Failure Resume
My failure resume is a personal inventory of major rejections, setbacks, and professional missteps I've experienced over the years that allowed me to grow into who I am today.
Preface
The Healing Journey — Wellness Professional
The Setback: A fractured right foot (12), Two ACL reconstructive right-knee surgeries (16)(21), Achilles Tear on my right ankle (32), Road rash on half of my right leg (33).
The Lesson: The body keeps score. You only injure parts of the body that are limited in range of motion. You cannot rush the healing process.
The Change: Intentionally stretching to increase mobility. Self-myofascial release, foam rolling with different modalities. A weekly yoga and strength training practice.
I was a husky kid, that grew a lot faster than most kids my age. Entering my teenage years, specifically that summer between 7th and 8th grade, I worked out everyday. What began as just push-ups and sit-ups during TV commercial breaks at night, turned into a work ethic that allowed me to walk onto a D1 back-to-back championship collegiate basketball team my senior year at LIU Brooklyn.
Chapter 01
The Corporate Personal Trainer — Equinox & Jordan Brand
The Setback: Not understanding direct to consumer sales, the power of marketing, client pipelines, client retention, client referrals, & Net 90's.
The Lesson: Learning supply and demand theory, throttling between quality and quantity numbers of clientele. The power of empirical data and analytics. Navigating complex corporate contract structure and language. Knowledge exchange with my C-Suite clientele.
The Change: Investing in marketing research materials. Utilizing my network to grow my net worth. Incorporating data and analytics before any decision making. Establishing air-tight contracts when doing business with others to manage end-to-end expectations.
I grouped these two together because I was a personal trainer in both spaces. At Equinox, the clientele was exclusive and the facilities were high-end, with state-of-the-art workout equipment — much like Terminal 23, the former gym of Carmelo Anthony as a legacy Jordan Brand ambassador.
Chapter 02
Pivoting into Upward Mobility — Y7 Studios
The Setback: Starting over as a beginner. Not knowing how to manage people or property. Lacking brick & mortar scaling knowledge. Not being a certified yoga instructor.
The Lesson: Boutique fitness spaces were real estate companies, not wellness studios. Reciprocity amongst competitors, was an expansion tool to community and other networks. How to manage people and expectations with clear communication. Taking advantage of access opportunities.
The Change: Channeling curiosity into specific questions from the C-Suite and board members about business. Empowering my staff with trust in me and themselves as leaders. Navigating difficult conversations with patience, attentiveness, and a willingness to learn. Receiving my 200-HR yoga teacher training certification.
On February 27th 2020, I flew into Chicago to onboard new staff for a 13th yoga studio opening in River North. In April of 2018, I was working as front desk associate at the same yoga studio and we only had 6 locations. When working in a start-up environment, you have to wear many hats, be extremely malleable, and roll with the punches. In two years, I'd seen all there was to offer with managing people, brick & mortar maintenance, growth & scaling, and the erasure of it all during a global pandemic.
Chapter 03
Undocumented Ambassador — Lululemon
The Setback: Not having a large social media following, but being influential. Not owning my ideas once they were presented. Pouring into the growth of a brand that wasn't invested in my own growth.
The Lesson: You can't pay me in cool, with free merch. Large companies are looking to buy community rather than investing in community. Impact doesn't always need to be documented to be felt.
The Change: Leveraging value propositions, with data and analytics to facilitate asks. Aligning with brands and organizations that I resonate with, instead of one-sided collaborations.
I worked behind the scenes for numerous years, helping develop the menswear line in addition to brand awareness. Lululemon was home to at least three live podcast recordings, plus numerous photoshoots. My impact was felt through many activations, but I hang my hat on turning a women's crossbody bag into a unisex bike bag for a Brooklyn Cycling Crew called Good Co. during a photoshoot.
Chapter 04
Almost a Wall Dog — Overall Murals
The Setback: Starting over as a beginner again. No real knowledge in painting, wood working, or operating heavy machinery. Lack of an internal structural organization chart, for hierarchy and responsibilities. No established source of truth.
The Lesson: Work ethic beats talent any day. The only limitations are those you place upon yourself. If your peace is the cost, the price to pay is too expensive. Team work, really makes the dream work. Proper preparation prevents poor planning.
The Change: Utilizing all prior experiences to pull inspiration for day-to-day work tasks. Learning to ask for help when needed, especially from those who are more senior. Safety first, but always plan for worst case scenario.
Mural painting was a true baptism by fire in learning and leading a whole new industry of large-scale advertising. I've painted hundreds of walls, rigged suspended scaffolding on rooftops, and operated heavy machinery. About a year into the business, I discovered one of the underlying motivations from leadership was spite, and years of resentment from working for another larger mural painting company. Spite, or revenge, don't burn clean fuel as energy sources; eventually ill-gotten gains from such motivations will crumble because they aren't rooted in purity.
